School and Home
by Kizmet
Summary: [UltX] Random Walk 2: Professor Xavier dcsides to resolve a number of pressing issues by placing Remy in harm's way.
1. prologue

**School and Home**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Prologue 

On the small screen lurid pink energy was reflected back off Colossus' metallic skin and glinted off of Wolverine's extended claws. The pair formed a defensive shield, holding off all challengers while Gambit forced enough of his charge into the barrels of poison to not just blow them up but to break the chemicals compounds down into their harmless constiuatants. 

The camera closed in on Gambit as the boy swayed with the strain of pushing up against the limits Xavier had set on his powers. Then the image, highlighting both Remy's age and the slowly fading burns curving around the side his face. 

The picture reduced in size allowing the news anchor center stage as the reiterated the facts in the Drake's case against Xavier and Mrs. Drake's concerns other children being hurt at the school. 

In Xavier's office Peter Rasputin flinched guiltily. Logan snorted and turned off the TV, "That's the media for ya. Where were they when a pack of killers were hunting Remy across the country." 

"That isn't the current issue," Xavier said. "While normally I applaud your and Peter's efforts in patrolling the city, as well as attempts to draw Remy into the group, I have to question the wisdom of combining the two. Especially now and to do so before the eyes of the media?" 

"We weren't planning on stumbling onto an Acolytes' plot," Logan pointed out. "And how were we supposed to know that they were going to be filming a 'Cops' special in that neighborhood?" 

Xavier sighed. "My apologies Logan. I know many of last night's circumstances were outside of your control. Unfortunately that Drake woman is insisting that Social Services look into Remy's case. 

"Remy doesn't have a family he can be sent home to," Peter said frowning in confusion. "What can they do?" 

"At this point they simply wish to speak with him," Xavier said, his features twisting with distaste. "At their offices, they believe he'll be more willing to speak freely away from the school." 

****** ****** ****** 

Logan looked over Remy critically. "Loose the coat, you're trying to make a good impression," he said. 

"Why do I got to do dis?" Remy whined, reluctantly complying. 

"They're looking for a reason to take you out of the school," Logan explained. "They're trying to contact your parents." 

"Bet dey have loads of luck findin' someone willin' to claim dat honor," Remy said with a smirk that didn't quite manage to cover the old hurt in his eyes. 

"You lie about your name, bub?" Logan asked reaching out to straighten the collar of Remy's shirt. 

"Not 'xactly," Remy replied batting his hand away. "But dere be no birth certificate dat says Remy Lebeau on it. I 'spect m' parents 'll take 'vantage of dat." 

"I'm sorry it's like that," Logan said. "Still you've got to take this seriously. They're pretty set on giving you some sort of legal guardian and if they can't find your parents and the social worker decides you're in danger here they'll place you in a foster home." 

"If dey t'ink I stay anywhere I don' want dey got a surprise coming," Remy said darkly. 

"Look Rem, they can't make you do anything you don't want to. We know that even if it ain't had a chance to soak in for them," Logan sighed. "But for the rest of our sakes be on your best behavior. Bobby's parents really want this place shut down. I know you and Chuck ain't on the best terms. Hell, I don't agree with his reasons for screwing with your head myself. Still his dream, mutants and humans in harmony, not at each other's throats, it's a good one. Don't give them the excuse to shut us down that they're looking for, 'kay?" 

"An' leave m'self easy pickin's for Sinister?" Remy replied. He glanced in the hall mirror then complained, "I don't even look like me. I want m' trench coat." 

Logan found he couldn't disagree with that. With sunglasses hiding his eyes, Remy's hair grown out less than two inches since the fight with Sinister, dressed in new jeans and a button down shirt, Remy truly didn't look like himself. Of course none of that changed the way the boy carried himself. Fight or flight was never far from the surface of Remy's mind. "Looking respectable ain't the end of the world kid," Logan said after a moment. "And in this instance it won't hurt none either. Don't worry, you'll out grow it." 

"I look like a chile," Remy protested. "One who's mere picked out his clothes." 

"You calling me a mother hen Cajun?" Logan asked with a short bark of laughter. 

"If de label fits," Remy said innocently. "Still don't see what was wrong wid m' normal t'ings." 

"Stop your bitchin' and get a move on it, you don't want to be late." 

Scott walked into the room, arms crossed over his chest glaring at Logan from behind his quartz glasses. "If you really cared you wouldn't have gotten Remy in this mess in the first place," he said his voice hard. 

"You got no business dictating how I act Summers," Logan snarled. "Or deciding who I'm good enough for." 

Remy fidgeted uncomfortably, reminding himself he wasn't actually the cause of the animosity that that choked the air between the two men, merely the excuse at hand to bring it to the surface." 

"Come on Remy, car's waiting," Scott said disdaining to respond to Logan. 

"Yo' drivin'?" Remy asked, hoping he didn't sound upset. 

"Yep, they specified no telepaths and the Professor thought it would look better if your escort wasn't a know assassin, Peter's out and Hank won't go out in public so that leaves me. Besides I've been meaning to talk with you for quite awhile, but something always seems to come up." 

Remy shot Logan a pleading look. 

"He just wants to apologize for being an ass," Logan said. "So I ain't gonna help you avoid him." 

Scott's expression betrayed surprise at Logan's support. 

"I'm not petty enough to drag the kid into the middle of you and I's fightin' about Jeanie," Logan said shortly, then left. 

Remy walked outside and got in the car. 

"Actually, I don't want to apologize again," Scott said quietly as they drove. "I know you were only pretending to be asleep all those times in the infirmary when I tried to talk to you. I want you to talk to me. I want to know what I have to do to make it up to you." 

"Yo' got nothin' to 'pologize for," Remy said staring out the window. "Yo' were right, I should of know. I got all dose people killed. Yo' don' have to 'pologize for de truth." 

"Remy I had no business saying that. I told you I was the idiot flying the get-away jet after the Brotherhood blew up the Parliament and MIG Building in London, you think I didn't get people killed there? And I did know better, I knew exactly what Magneto and the rest of them were." 

"So yo' got blood on your hands too, dat supposed to make me feel bettah?" Remy asked angrily. "Rien makes me feel bettah. I jus' want to forget it evah happened but yo' keep tryin' to talk to me 'bout it. Yo' surprised I been 'voidin' yo'?" 

"I'm sorry Remy," Scott said. "I thought you were upset about the stuff I said, the truth is it wasn't really your fault, you just got caught in the middle." 

"I said I don' want to talk 'bout dis!" Remy practically yelled. 

"Okay, I won't ever bring it up again, but we're still friends right?" 

"Dat be yo' or Xavier talkin' mon frere?" Remy asked without looking toward Scott. 

"I'm so sick of this whole conspiracy thing!" Scott exploded unexpectedly. "We're all going to drive ourselves insane questioning everything we feel and think. It's already tearing Ororo and Hank apart. You think the rest of us should join them? Or can we just call it good and realize that Xavier might be the most powerful telepath on the planet, but even he can't have the time, energy or inclination to fix each and every thought in our heads!" 

Remy looked taken aback, after a few moments he asked. "What yo' want from me?" 

"It's simple really," Scott said. "I want you to believe that I want to be your friend, that no one is making me say that, and that I don't have ulterior motives, okay?" 

"Why don' yo' jus' ask for de moon and stars while yo' be at it?" Remy replied with a touch of self-mockery in his voice. 

"I forgot who I was talking to," Scott said with a grin. "Go ahead and assume I've got ulterior movies so long as you believe they're MY ulterior motives and no one else's." 

"An' what motives should I assume?" Remy asked reluctantly returning Scott's smile. 

"How about I figure if I hang around you long enough I might just pick up that accent of yours. It's got to have something to do with the way girls drool over you," Scott replied. 

"Yo' ain't got de attitude to make it work mon ami," Remy laughed. " 'Sides Jean strikes me as de possessive type, yo' sure yo' even want to t'ink 'bout other femmes?" 

"I just want to make sure that I can upstage whatever it was that attracted her to Logan," Scott muttered to himself. "We're almost there," he said more loudly. "They're going to ask about the burns and I know Sinister's being after you is the biggest reason keeping you in Westchester, but you probably shouldn't say anything about fighting him. Tell 'em it was an accident with your powers, that might scare them out of trying to take you away," Scott advised. 

"An' tellin' dem I got a homicidal megalomaniac wid superpowers after me won'?" Remy asked. "Honnete, Scotty anybody wantin' to keep me close be either crazy or suicidal." 

"Hey, I resemble that," Scott joked. "Seriously though I don't want to give them anything they could use against us. And we shouldn't have let Sinister get that close to you." 

"Yo' notice me complainin' 'bout dat?" Remy asked. "I got to hurt de connard, be happier 'bout dat den most anyt'ing. Jus' wish I'd managed to kill him. Yo' 'member dat 'tomic 'xplosion M. Henri t'inks I could make? Mebbe it be wort' it if it arret him." 

"Remy!" Scott protested. 

"A'ight, I blew m'self up in an accident," Remy said. 

"Thanks," Scott replied. "At least you're healing clean. If this had waited another month or so I doubt the scars would have even been visible." 

"An' den we couldn' of used tales m' dangerous an' out of control powers to scare dem off," Remy said with a pragmatic shrug. 

"We're here," Scott said. 

Remy's mouth twisted unhappily as Scott parked in front of an ugly, utilitarian office building. "Why I have to do dis? Dey be a bunch of hypocrites!" 

Scott did a double take at that. "You've never even met them," he said. 

"Did so, had three different teachers try to send dem out to talk wid m' parents. After de first one got a look at me dey be full of 'scuses. Yo' lot be de only ones to evah give me de help I need widout payment. An' now, after I been taken care of m'self for four years, after leaving me to deal wid de likes of Sinister widout dere help, dey wanna protect me from yo'? Fuck that!" Remy exclaimed. 

Scott sighed, "Well they didn't have Emily Drake hounding them before. That woman can reduce Wolverine to stammering," Scott said. "Come on its time to go. Remember to be nice." 

****** ****** ****** 

"What de camera be for?" Remy demanded hanging back in the office doorway. 

"We wanted a record of our conversation to insure no one alters our perceptions later," the man said waving Remy in. "Considering Xavier's history we're quite concerned about your safety there." 

Remy's eyes glowed hotly, visible even through his shades. 

The social worker gulped. "P-please, have a seat," he stuttered. 

****** ****** ****** 

In the waiting room Scott tried to pretend he was interested in the ancient magazines. As the handle turned on the inner office door he leapt to his feet. 

Remy walked out smirking; the social worker came over to Scott and shook the bewildered X-Man's hand enthusiastically. "Such an honor to meet you," he gushed. "So sorry to waste your time like this. We're so impressed by you're efforts on Remy's behalf." 

"Thanks," Scott said flatly as he and Remy walked out of the office he murmured, "You charmed him didn't you?" 

"De socks off his feet and de brains out of his head," Remy confirmed. "De later wasn' hard t'all." 

"I thought you were morally opposed to stuff like that?" Scott asked sarcastically. "And you know it's going to wear off." 

Remy shrugged. "He's de one dat started wid de fake emotions, I jus' figured if he's so fond of dem he might as well fake de t'ings I want him to feel, non?" 

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	2. 1 of 8

**School and Home Part 1/8**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Author's Note: Well since Hank is definately having a melt down, I thought it was only fair to let Ororo have one of her own, after all she is the one who got dumped, regardless of Hank's reason. And even if Hank was closer to Bobby, he was hurt while trying to protect Storm. 

****** ****** ****** 

"Nada, nothing, rien, nyet," Storm reported, collapsing into the chair in Scott's hotel room. Picking up the remote and starting a rapid flip through the channels 

"That last was no, not nothing," Scott commented his voice angry. "And you might have better luck if you'd actually spend some time at the high school. Your comm. was off. You weren't in class. I spent most of the afternoon looking for you instead of the killer." 

"Just because the victims were High Schoolers that doesn't mean that the killer is," Ororo replied with a shrug. "We've been hanging around the freakin' school for nearly a month with nothing to show. I thought I might have better luck at the college." 

"Yeah, I saw you," Scott said. "You certainly looked like you were on the verge of getting lucky." 

"Grow up Scott," Ororo said. "We're under cover and flirting works to get people talking. And even if I did mean anything by it, it's not like I've got a boyfriend at home is it?" 

"Hey stop, what' the Professor doing on TV?" Scott said suddenly. 

Ororo stopped channel surfing and turned up the volume. 

"Due to the continued concerns being expressed about the presence of a minor at my Institute without the consent of a legal guardian, it has been agreed that Remy Lebeau will be staying with a foster family until his parents can be contacted or failing that, until a guardian can be appointed..." 

"What is the Professor thinking!?" Scott exploded. "He can't send Remy away. He's going to get killed if Sinister goes after him again." 

"Why didn't Xavier just tell them about Sinister and the Marauders," Ororo wondered. "I mean if they knew what kind of people were after Remy there wouldn't be anyone wanting to take him, then they'd have to let him stay." 

"I wish Remy had more of a choice," Scott sighed. "He always feels so trapped, but he really doesn't have any place else to go, not if he wants to be safe. I'm going to call the school, there has to be something going on." 

Ororo waited while Scott dialed the number. 

"Xavier's School for the Gifted, Jean speaking." 

"Hey sweetie, miss me?" Scott asked hopefully. 

"Every minute," Jean replied. 

Scott grinned stupidly for a moment, then his expression turned serious. "I didn't just call to talk," he admitted. "I need to find out if the Professor's taken leave of his senses." 

"You saw the interview huh?" Jean said. "It isn't as bad as it seems, the Professor has a plan. You're going to hate the plan and it's got Logan trashing the danger room right now… Who'd of guessed that the world's foremost assassin has a strong parental streak?" 

"Who'd of guessed," Scott repeated scowling. "Now about this plan I'm going to hate?" 

"I'll let the Professor tell you," Jean replied. "Love you." 

"Love you too," Scott said. 

A few seconds later he and Ororo hear the Professor's mental voice inside their heads, "I was expecting your call Scott." 

"How can you send Remy away?" Scott demanded. 

"I'm not, I'm sending him to you," Xavier replied. "He'll be staying with the Denara family." 

"The parents of the mutant teen who's still missing?" Ororo asked. 

"Yes, the family that requested our help in locating their son," Xavier said. 

"Does Remy know you're setting him up as bait?" Scott asked pointedly. "We didn't take Hank because he was too obvious of a target, but now you're sending Remy?" 

"Yes, he knows" Xavier said bluntly. "I didn't send Beast because of his current mental state. I'm afraid becoming the target of a hate group combined with his current anger and depression could have had disastrous results. Remy believes there is an outside possibility that Sinister took the missing children. He asked to help." 

"What happened to not sending kids on missions?" Scott asked angrily. 

"First that was never a decision, you simply stated an ultimatum. Second, despite the unfortunate media coverage, Remy handled himself quite well in combat. Third, I'm sure you remember Remy turning sixteen a month ago since you arranged the birthday party," Xavier replied. 

"And if that had been his eighteenth birthday I wouldn't be objecting," Scott said considering 'hanging up' on Xavier. Given the distance the only reason Xavier could reach his mind was because of their familiarity and receptive mental state. Scott knew he could close off his mind as easily as slamming a phone down. "I meant it, I'm not going to lead a mission with Remy on the team." 

"I'm not asking you to," Xavier said. "All you have to do is protect him if any trouble develops. I'm sure I can trust you with his safety. He'll be starting classes Monday." With that Scott felt Xavier's abrupt departure from his mind. 

"That bastard!" Scott exclaimed. "He don't even have to manipulate us telepathically, I mean why bother when an old fashion guilt trip works so well?" 

Scott grabbed up the phone and pounded the redial button. 

"Remy really can't stay here without bring the wrath of the courts down on us," Jean said, answering the phone before the first ring was half finished. "This way he's still got you to watch out for him and if something does happen then everyone will realize he's safest with us and drop the whole mess." 

"Gimme the phone Red," Scott heard Logan growl in the background. "Listen up Summers, what Jeannie doesn't want to admit is that if Remy does get hurt it'll compromise the Drake's position against the school. Chuck's makin' damn sure everyone knows he's agreeing to this under protest because of the legal pressure they're putting on him." 

Logan paused for a few moments. "Normally I'm all for killin' a few birds with one stone and this plan has it's points: It could blow the lid off your cover up, permanently resolve Remy's legal status and hurt the Drakes' chances of shutting down the school, but I don't like the risk to Remy and I don't like the idea of us using the kid like that. He's had enough people using him already." 

"If you were really worried about Remy's safety..." Scott began. 

"Put a sock in it Summers," Logan snapped. "That's an old tune. If I'd know we were going to run into the Acolytes I would have brought the whole team, but Remy's more than capable of handling the muggers and other assorted low-lifes Pete and I usually run into. If it was just your hate group I'd say go for it, but Sinister is still out there and with all this media crap we're damn near putting out a neon sigh inviting people to take a shot a Remy." 

"Okay, we're agreed that Remy shouldn't be sent here," Scott said. "What are we going to do about it?" 

"My first choice would be to tell all the legal-types to shove it where the sun don't shine, but since Xavier won't go for that we're moving on to plan B. I know more than a little about disappearing and telepaths can't track either Remy or I. I figure I could turn up in your vicinity in a couple of days and persuade Remy into hitting the road for a while. We go off the radar until this whole mess blows over and you and Storm complete your mission using the original parameters," Logan suggested. 

"Heck, we could even use Remy's 'disappearance' to the same ends as a real attack on him," Scott said. "When should we expect you?" 

"I can't take off right away without leaving Pete in a lurch, and there's a few things I need to set up ahead of time to disappear properly, but I'll be there by the end of the week," Logan promised. 

****** ****** ****** 

Remy got out of the cab, paid the driver then swung a duffle bag over his shoulder and started for the house he could barely make out within the incredibly lush gardens surrounding it. 

As he entered the gardens an air of sadness enveloped him. "What de hell? Someone here?" Remy asked looking around for the source of the emotions. He noticed all the plants were beginning to wilt, their leaves drooping as if they were in mourning. 

"Yo' imaginin' t'ings," Remy told himself. "Plants don' feel." 

A door creaked and Remy felt a hint of relief as he heard human footsteps approaching. 

An older woman appeared carrying a bag of fertilizer. She started upon seeing Remy then smiled. "You must be Professor Xavier's student. I'm Rachael Denara, Kevin's mom." 

Remy nodded, moving to take the bag for her. "Remy Lebeau, pleased to meet yo'." 

"I'm just happy to help, what with his X-Men looking for our Kevin, still it was such an odd request. I'm sure there were safer places to send you." 

"I can take care of m'self," Remy assured her. "An' dat not be de point. Cyke an' Stormy need someone to be bait, I needed somewhere away from de school to be. Dis fills everyone's needs... Where do yo' want dis?" he asked indicating the fertilizer. 

"If you don't mind?" Rachael asked gesturing into the garden. Remy shrugged and followed her. "Still you're barely any older than my Kevin, I'd hate for you to get hurt." 

"What was Kevin's mutation?" Remy asked. 

Rachael looked around the garden sadly. "Plants loved him, under his touch they all flourished, even the ones that have no business liking California soils. I try to keep them healthy to welcome him home, but they're all dying, they miss him so much." 

"I t'ought dey felt sad, t'ought I was goin' crazy," Remy said. 

"No, they're Kevin's plants, they're different. He never wanted a pet, he had them," Rachael replied starting in on her gardening. 

"Well, m' power involves t'ings 'xplodin'," Remy said halfheartedly pulling a few weeds. "Not as beau as all dis, but it keeps me safe. An' I got Cyke an' Stormy watchin' out for me. Cyke's a real worrier. Don' yo' worry none 'bout me getting hurt, he does it 'nough for ten people." 

"The tall young man with the visor?" Rachael asked. "He seemed very responsible." 

"I t'ink he be plannin' to legally change his name to dat," Remy replied, he glanced around looking for someplace to get rid of the weeds he'd pulled. Not seeing anything he called up enough of his power to burn them down to ash. 

"It's a good quality, don't knock it," Rachael said with a small grin. "Oh where are my manners, I've already got you doing chores and you haven't even had a chance to unpack your bags. Come inside and get yourself settled." 

Feeling a touch bemused Remy followed her into the house where he'd be staying until things hit the fan and everyone realized that he didn't belong with a normal family. 

"Go ahead and explore a little," Rachael invited. "You'll feel more at home. Mark will be getting off work in a few hours. You can meet him then. Your room is straight down the hall, first door on the left, the bathroom is the second door on the right." 

"Merci," Remy replied. "Yo' sure yo' don' mind me pokin' round? I don' want to be a bother." 

"No bother, having you here will make the house feel less empty until Kevin gets home." Rachael replied. 

Remy stared at her feeling both uncomfortable and curious. "Yo' heard 'bout what Jean saw when she held de backpack?" he asked. 

"Yes, but she misunderstood what she saw," Rachael said with a quiet confidence. "Kevin's alive, I'd know if my baby were dead." 

Remy tactfully decided to keep his opinions about maternal instincts verses mutant abilities to himself and just nodded noncommittally before taking up Rachael's invitation to explore. 

He felt particularly drawn to the family's numerous photos. Kevin Denara's green thumb might have only been metaphorical, but his hair and eyes made up for that in spades. Remy traced Kevin's life backwards through the photos, then asked. "Your fils was born wid de colourin'?" 

"He was," Rachael answered. "I always loved Kevin's eyes. Were yours the same or did they change? I read it's more common for mutations to be triggered by puberty." 

"Den I be uncommon," Remy said. "M' eyes always been dis way. Bettah dat way I guess. Would have been a nasty shock t look in de mirror un matin and see dese starin' back at me." 

Rachael let Remy's remark pass without comment and he turned back to examining the photos. "Photography be a hobby?" Remy asked after a few minutes. 

"Oh no. I feel like a success if we manage to get a whole role without any thumb shots, Rachael replied. 

"It's jus' I nevah seen a house wid so many pictures," Remy said. 

"I guess we do like to keep our memories on display," Rachael said. 

Remy smiled politely, but uncomprehendingly. His parents had never been fond of photographs, he vaguely remembered pictures of their wedding being displayed when he was younger, but they'd been put away years before he'd run away. There hadn't been many memories they'd wanted to keep fresh Remy supposed. 

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	3. 2 of 8

**School and Home Part 2/8**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

"Are we clear on it not being Sinister, so there's nothing for you to feel guilty about and no reason for you to get involved? Just stay inconspicuous, don't draw attention and don't get into trouble," Scott instructed catching Remy outside of the high school 

"I ain't a chile an' I ain't a charity case," Remy replied sullenly. "Can do m' part for de team, neh?" 

"No," Scott said firmly. 

"Come on Cyke, it'll look worse if Remy does cause a stir before Logan spirits him away," Ororo said. "What's going to happen in a week anyway?" 

"I don't know and I don't want to worry about it," Scott replied. 

"Don' I get a say in dis?" Remy asked. "It be m' risk to take." 

"No," Scott repeated. "As your field commander, I'm telling you not to." 

"Yo' say I'm too young for de X-Men," Remy said with a shrug. "Dat means yo' ain't de boss of me an' I don' have to do what yo' say." 

"Remy!" Scott exclaimed as the younger boy turned his back on them and walked off. 

"Be seein' yo' mes amies," Remy said. 

"Have fun Remy," Ororo replied. 

"I swear, I'll tie you up and sit on you till Logan gets here if you don't behave yourself," Scott threatened. 

"Chere, yo' best be getting' de fearless leader to mellow out for he give hisself a heart attack," Remy said letting the school door shut behind him. He glanced around the school's bright, utilitarian hall, lined with lockers painted in obnoxious yellow and purple hues. 

"Either someone be havin' a sale on dose colours or de painter be colour blind," Remy said settling his sunglasses a bit more firmly on his nose. 

Remy walked into the main office and paused scanning the room. He picked out the prettiest of the secretaries and sauntered over to her desk. 

"Bonjour chere," he said smiling warmly. "Yo' be de lovely mademoiselle I'm to get m' schedule from?" 

"Sure Heartbreaker," the woman laughed. "If you'll give me your name?" 

"Remy Lebeau at your service," he replied with a grin and a slight bow. 

"That fits. I'm Claire by the way. All right, here it is. I'll get a locker assigned to you then I can point out the various halls. We don't have time for a tour before your first class, but I'm certain you'll charm someone into providing one and I'll bet you're classmates will have a more interesting set of stories to go along with the facts and figures." 

"Yo' deign me de pleasure of yo' company chere?" Remy asked flirting outrageous, knowing the woman didn't take him seriously and that she was enjoying it anyway. 

Clair scribbled out a locker combination and handed that to Remy along with his schedule. "I just find your presence so overwhelmin'." Clair replied in a theatrical southern belle accent, fluttering her eyelashes and pressing a hand to her heart. "Come on Heartbreaker, let me make sure you can find your way to at least one class." 

****** ****** ****** 

Claire left Remy at his first class a few minutes before the first bell. He looked over the empty room with unabashed curiosity. The board on the front wall was white instead of green, the desks were bigger and the pictures on the walls were less brightly colored, but overall it wasn't too hugely different from the last classroom he'd been in. Remy felt vaguely disappointed at that, in the fifth grade, high school had seemed like another world. 

Sensing someone approaching behind him Remy stepped fully into the room and turned to confront them. 

A stout man with light brown, slightly curly hair and slightly greenish eyes came in and walked to his desk. "New student or just lost?" he asked Remy. 

"Perhaps bot' less yo' be M. Dumas de mat' instructor?" Remy replied. 

"I'm impressed, you got the pronunciation right, but judging from the accent, you've got something of an edge when it comes to French," Mr. Dumas confirmed. "By the way, no hats or sunglasses are allowed in the classroom unless the roof leaks or you've just gotten back from having your eyes dilated." 

"Got an eye condition," Remy said frostily, slipping the sunglasses up just far enough to let the instructor get a good look at his unique eyes. 

Unimpressed, Mr. Dumas asked. "Does the light hurt your eyes or are you just ashamed of them?" 

Remy snapped off the glasses and dropped them in his pocket. "Bettah?" he asked angrily. 

"Much," Mr. Dumas replied. "If you try to hide what you are it's easier for other people to use it against you." 

Remy's eyes widened with disbelief at that but before he could decide on whether or not to debate that statement several other students wandered into the room. 

Remy saw the flicker of shock as his eyes registered with them. Working as a street performer his eyes had always been an advantage Remy suddenly remembered they made people stop and stare. The trick and the dangerous part was winning them over as an audience before shock turned into fear. 

He sauntered over to the group. "Dey be unique, neh? See pretty good in de dark, me," his glance focused in on the other guys in the group, a sly smile touching his mouth. "Wish dey do de X-ray t'ing, but yo' take what yo' get, neh?" 

A few snorts of laugher, a few rolled eyes. "Not a bad start," Remy thought to himself. 

"I'm Karen," one of the girls said offering her hand. "That's Grady, Brian, Marcy and Rich." 

"I be Remy," he replied making a show of kissing the back of her hand. 

"Ooh me next," Marcy giggled. "Guys take lessons. I like this one." 

"You get impressed over the strangest things," Brian said shaking his head. "Nice to meet you Remy. If you keep this up I may have to hurt you. I need Marcy's head out of the clouds if I expect to pass this class." 

"Check, no flirtin' wid de femmes tell after mat'," Remy replied. 

"Oh you can flirt with me all you like," Karen corrected. "I'm counting on Marcy's tutoring to get me through this class too." 

"Seems it be in m' best interests to be nice to Marcy," Remy said. 

"As long as it's outside of math class," Brain said as the bell rang, putting an end to the conversation. 

****** ****** ****** 

"What happened to low profile?" Scott muttered grabbing a seat beside Ororo. Across the cafeteria a healthy crowd had gathered around Remy. 

"Stop being such a worry-wart," Ororo replied. "Besides, I think its habit as much as anything else. You know he always fiddles with his cards when he's nervous. Faced with this sort of a crowd, switching over to his old street performer act is probably second nature." 

"And what happens when our killer targets Remy?" Scott asked angrily. 

"Wasn't that the point of having him here?" Ororo asked rolling her eyes. "When, if, it happens we take care of it and go home. I don't know why you're making such a fuss." 

"He's a kid, he shouldn't be worrying about people shooting at him, not that he is worried. He should be taking this more seriously, he could be in danger," Scott complained. 

"And you're what? Barely three years older," Ororo said. "If it weren't for people trying to kill Remy he'd still be on the streets. And I'm just as glad he's not neurotic about it, it's not like people are going to stop hating mutants any time soon." 

The cards bridged between Remy's hands with a slow arc that defied all logic, unless you were familiar with the more subtle applications of Remy's powers. "Yo' see I got tired of having people tell me what to do an' so on. Took off, lived on m' own for 'bout a year. Made a livin' doin' dis," Remy was saying. 

"If you were so good why aren't you doing that now?" one boy challenged. 

"How long could yo' stand yo' own cookin'?" Remy replied. 

Laugher and estimates, most measured in days spread through the crowd. 

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," the boy said. "I really like mac and cheese." 

Remy and the boy grinned at each other, sharing the center of attention for a moment. 

"Where did you live?" one girl asked her eyes wide with concern. 

"New Jersey," Remy said glibly sidestepping the question. 

"Why would you want to go there?" a disdainful voice asked. 

"Mais, I made a list of everywhere someone might 'xspect me to go," Remy said, shifting the cards through an elaborate, enthralling pattern. "Den I go somewhere else. New Jersey was definitely somewhere else. Ugly as hell and de femmes weren't much to look at neither." 

"Fascinating the way he forgets to mention being cold, hungry and filthy," Scott commented. 

"He's telling a story not making a documentary," Ororo replied. "We just have to hope he doesn't charm the bad guy along with everyone else and this case'll be closed in no time flat." 

Scott looked grim. "He's not charming them with anything other than his personality. If they don't like mutants he's just going to inflame them." 

****** ****** ****** 

"Mr. Summers, at least pretend you're paying attention to this class," a sharp voice demanded. 

Reluctantly Scott pulled his gaze away from the classroom window in the next wing over. He'd managed to get a copy of Remy's schedule from the younger boy during the last class break and he was reasonably certain he was keeping an eye on the right set of windows. Not that it would be the end of the world if he were off by a room or two, Remy's powers weren't exactly discrete when the boy felt threatened. 

"Please tell the class what we've been discussing for the last half hour," the teacher ordered irritably. 

"World War I," Scott said without hesitation. 

"More specific, we've been discussing the first world war for almost a week." 

A slow, smug grin crept across Scott's face. "Specifically the Zimmerman telegram and the Lusitanian's rolls in bringing the US into the war," Scott replied making a mental note to thank Jean for all the times she'd forced him to hold a mental conversation with her while continuing an entirely separate verbal conversation. "I don't have to look at you to hear you." 

The rush of anger that filled the woman's face almost felt good to Scott, better than sitting back and letting Remy make himself a target in any case. As the teacher stalked back to the front of the room Scott's attention turned back to watching over Remy. 

As soon as the bell rang signifying the end of the day Scott was out of his seat and working his way to the most probable intercept course with Remy. 

Scott spotted the younger boy's almost shoulder length russet hair just as he reached the hall's juncture. Lengthening his stride Scot caught up and snagged the collar of Remy's coat, hauling him out of the flood of bodies hurrying toward the parking lot. 

"Yo' lucky I knew it was yo'," Remy said, dark eyes flashing angrily. "Else yo' be hurtin' right now, comprenez?" 

Wolverine's training was paying off, Scott decided noticing that Remy had dropped into a fighting stance rather than going immediately for his cards. 

"Done playing James Dean for the day?" Scott asked sarcastically. 

"Got a job a to do Scotty. Yo' gonna try to stop me?" Remy asked the look on his face clearly stating that he didn't think Scott could. 

"Okay," Scott sighed. "Do what you want, but if you sense any hostility, you tell me. Don't try to handle it yourself." 

"I ain't helpless," Remy protested. 

"I don't care," Scott exclaimed. "Just take it as humoring my control-freak tendencies and tell me! I'm responsible for keep my team safe, how the hell am I supposed to do that if you don't keep me in the loop?" 

"D'accord, yo' got m' word Scotty. I get a cross look yo'll hear 'bout it. Happy now?" 

"Yes, I'm deliriously happy, and you're still leaving with Logan the minute he gets here," Scott said. 

"Guess I'm goin' to have to work fast," Remy replied. 

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	4. 3 of 8

**School and Home**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Part 3 

Ororo glanced down the hall toward Scott's room then slipped out muttering mockingly, " 'Storm, You can't go to a bar, you're supposed to be a high school student. What if someone sees you?' Like my ID is real anyway Scotty." 

A short while later she slid into a booth across from a heavy-set, dark haired young man who stared at her with a happily disbelieving expression. 

"I figured you wouldn't come," he stammered. "I thought that other guy had to be your boyfriend or something. That you were just..." 

"Who, Scott?" Ororo laughed. "I just work with him, really uptight, wouldn't know how to have fun unless some wrote an instruction manual. Nothing like you Danny." 

Danny blushed, girls like Ororo, who looked like they could have a bright future as a super-model, didn't just walk up and hit on guys like him, only she had. Better yet she was here now, with him, not with the slim, muscular guy in red shades who'd shown up and drug her off almost before he'd worked up the nerve to ask her out. 

"Want to dance?" Danny asked hopefully. 

Ororo smiled happily extending her hand to him. 

****** ****** ****** 

"So what do yo' do?" Remy asked, forcing himself to draw Mark into conversation. 

As far as Remy was concerned learning to use his empathy, as Xavier called it, was the bane of his existence and probably the professor's as well, but the one thing they'd managed to discover was that there was a vocal component to it. In other words it was easier for Remy to influence a person if he was talking to them and easier to read them if they were talking. 

"Jus' like normal people," Remy had commented with a short bark of laughter at the time. "Mebbe there's rien to dis empathy dat yo' t'ink I have den an ole' fashion silver tongue. Certainly got de devil part neh?" 

"No!" Xavier had protested, his mental tone carrying the sharp bite of anger. "You know better than that. You are not a demon, devil or the offspring of such. You are a mutant, a post-human, and I am quite sick of hearing you refer to yourself and others using derogatory terms. Furthermore, your mental shields are solid evidence of a psionic component to your mutation. Your reliance on speech is simply a crutch. If you would simply permit me..." 

The conversation had ended like every other instance when Xavier had suggested Remy should allow the Professor anything more than surface access to his mind: Remy had left. 

He didn't bother to storm out. He simply left. They both knew with a little time, effort and the willingness to leave Remy disoriented and headachy for days afterwards Xavier could force Remy's shields to yield. They both knew Remy could be subtly influenced through telepathy, if the telepath had a sufficiently light touch. However exposure to telepaths was only increasing Remy's sensitivity to them. Still since setting an upper limit on the destructive potential of Remy's more showy talent Xavier hadn't tried forcing the issue. 

It didn't mean that they liked or trusted one another, which made Xavier's attempts to train Remy in the use of his illusive psionic talent a trial for both participates. 

When teaching Jean Grey, Xavier had done it from the inside out. Linking with her mind to share his experiences without ever translating his hard won knowledge into clumsy words. That option wasn't a viable method of teaching for Remy. 

Due to Remy's shields even speaking mind to mind with Remy was awkward, they heard each other as if listening to a badly tuned radio station. Despite the lack of clarity Xavier continued using mind-speak as his primary mode of communication and Remy kept his shields firmly in place and that battle of wills was only one of the minor difficulties. 

After months of training the one thing they were both firmly convinced of was that Remy's abilities were not a derivative of telepathy. While a telepath could pick up on the emotional overtones of a person's thoughts and Remy could deduce a person's thoughts from their emotions, his powers functioned on an entirely different level than those of a telepath. Even the concepts Xavier could explain to Remy in words couldn't be applied to Remy's powers. 

So in the end what Remy knew was that if he wanted to get a read on a person he should get them talking. 

Rachael was easy; gregarious by nature the mere presence of another person was enough to get her going. Mark was less open, still Remy was beginning to get a feel for him as well. 

He'd never be able to fully trust his empathic abilities after they'd failed to warn him away from Richard and Essex, but he was learning to listen to them again. Listen to the gardens singing their grief and loss, listen to Rachael's bright, blind conviction and Mark's more battered hope. They were nice people; this had been a family in the truest sense of the word. Until someone came along and tore that apart. Remy wished he could do more for them than just looking for their son's murder. 

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	5. 4 of 8

**School and Home**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Part 4 

" 'If I'm not back by morning at least you'll know where to start looking for my corpse'," Ororo read from the note she'd found slipped under her door when she'd returned from her date with Danny. "Come on Scotty, I'm sure if you really tried you could come up with something mellow dramatic." 

"You knew there was another Friends of Humanity meeting tonight," Scott started. 

"I forgot," Ororo defended herself. 

"You should have been around to help me check it out. Instead you were out goofing around with Mr. Rebound." 

"And how was this meeting different from the last two?" Ororo asked sarcastically. "Do you hear the wild geese honking?" 

"I know there's something wrong about this FOH group," Scott said. 

"Yeah, they hate our guts, along with half of congress and nearly every person you pass on the streets. Excuse me if I don't jump at the chance to subject myself to more of that sort of crap than I get reading graffiti. They didn't claim responsibility for the killings the other times, why would this one be any different?" 

"That wasn't the point," Scott snapped. "We're supposed to be a team and you took off without a single word, again." 

****** ****** ****** 

Remy made sure he got to his first period class early the next day. "Dis be proud of being a mutant stuff, yo' tell it to Michael Lanes too?" he said picking out the first of the victims they were investigating. 

"Yes," the teacher replied. 

"Yo' evah t'ink mebbe dat have somet'ing to do wid him being kilt?" 

"Did someone threaten you?" Mr. Dumas asked, instantly filled with concern. "You've got to go to the police, you can't let them ignore this anymore." 

"Why dis such a big deal for yo'?" Remy asked curiously. "No one cares 'bout mutants." 

"I was teaching in LA last year when the Sentinels attacked," Mr. Dumas said. "I'm sure you remember that." 

Remy nodded, he'd seen the reports on a TV in a department store window and promptly buried himself in the deepest hole he could find. Several weeks later he'd emerged from the subway tunnels to learn that the President really had called off those monsters. 

"The reports said there were no civilian casualties," Mr. Dumas continued. "But eight kids from my school disappeared that day. We didn't even know five of them were mutants, all of them were just kids. No one said anything though, not even their parents, too afraid of what the neighbors might think. They were just gone and no one would even think about it. The world needs to know you're here..." 

"So it knows when dey kill us?" Remy asked. "Rather take m' chances in de shadows den play de martyr." 

"Nothing will change that way," Mr. Dumas said. 

"I don' care 'bout dat," Remy said. 

"I don't believe that." 

"Den tell me who kilt dem. Michael, Tiffany, Mara, Kevin, what happened to dem? Yo' standin' by an' watchin' us vanish 'gain," Remy said. 

"If I knew I'd have already gone to the police," Mr. Dumas said. "You have to be careful, take nothing for granted." 

"Everyone a'way tellin' me to be careful," Remy said. "Nevah get rien done dat way." 

****** ****** ****** 

Remy walked across the foyer, watching the girl slumped on one of the benches beneath the trophy cases. Her sandy blond hair was pulled up in a ponytail, displaying her well-pierced ears, her tee shirt was tight and ended just a hair higher than school policy allowed, her skirt fit the same description. Her eyes followed him as he approached. 

"Yo' been watchin' me chere?" he asked. 

"Maybe." 

"Yo' like what yo' see?" he asked. 

Her eyes scanned up his body, making no pretenses, when their eyes met she said. "Well enough. How 'bout you?" 

"Like to see more," Remy replied suggestively. 

"That could be fun," she replied. "Walk me to class?" 

"Would like nothin' bettah, chere," Remy said offering her his arm. 

As they strolled past the main office Remy wasn't even vaguely surprised when she tossed a quick glance through the windows then slid her hand in his back pocket. He just wished he could be as certain that the people HE wanted to tick off were also watching the show. 

****** ****** ****** 

"Get a grip Dave!" Clair hissed, catching sight of the school's on campus police officer, his face flushed with anger, storming toward the hall. 

"What the hell does Jennifer think she's doing?" he snarled. 

Claire glanced at the object of his ire. "Oh for god's sake they aren't doing anything wrong." 

"Jennifer is my daughter, I'll decide what's wrong for her." 

"Then in that case, she's doing exactly the same thing as when she got her tongue pierced, she's getting a rise out of you," Claire said. "Now she's being a little forward with a cute boy, you're way too easy Dave, she does next to nothing and you fly off the handle. You know damn well if you go charging out there it's only going to lead to another fight with her mother. If you don't get a hold of that temper of yours you could loose your job." 

Dave stopped, his mouth compressed into a thin angry line. "Well that freak better keep his hands to himself." 

"Remy's a nice kid," Claire reprimanded. "Don't you go putting him in the middle of your family problems." 

****** ****** ****** 

Scott scanned the cafeteria once more, then seeing Ororo he strode determinedly to her side. "You're here for once, so of course Remy goes missing," Scott said. "Why do you guys keep skipping out on me? This isn't some game." 

"Lighten up, Remy can take care of himself," Ororo said. 

"Okay, we better assume the worst," Scott continued ignoring what she'd said. "Look for any place he could have been cornered." 

"Scott, don't you think you're over reacting?" Ororo asked. "First you've seen Remy sparring with Logan, do you honestly think a bunch of high school students could hurt him? And second, even if they could, it wouldn't be quiet, we'd know if Remy were in trouble because half the school would be in ruins." 

"I'm not taking the chance that you're wrong," Scott stated. "Start looking." 

"Yes sir Mr. Boss, Sir," Ororo snapped. 

Scott sighed and started on his own search. Eventually he found his way to the camera loft over the gym. The door creaked slightly as Scott opened it, he heard a soft squeak of alarm and a flurry of activity that resolved into a girl glaring angrily at him from where she huddled under a trench coat. The coat's owner apparently felt no such embarrassment. 

Remy grinned watching the brilliant flush crawling up Scott's neck to spill across his cheeks. 

"Wrong door," Scott muttered backing out of the room, wondering why he was the one feeling embarrassed when Remy was the one missing most of his clothing. 

Scott found Ororo several minutes later. "I found him. He's fine. Don't ask." Scott told her. 

"I told you so," Ororo replied disinterestedly. "By the way, I'm skipping the rest of today. I just thought you'd want to know, bye." 

As Scott watched her walk off he called, "Keep your comm. on." Then muttered to himself, "Would it really be such an awful thing if the Professor 'helped' their attitudes, just a little bit?" 

****** ****** ****** 

Karen glanced at Remy and rolled her eyes in disgust. "You've got lipstick on your cheek," she told him. 

Remy made a show of trying to wipe it off but only managed to smear it around. 

Shaking her head Karen grabbed a napkin, tilted his head to the side and did it for him. "Everyone saw you with Jen Cardie earlier. I'm being a friend here, she's just using you to get back at her dad for cheating on her mom and having a Stone Age mind set." 

"If dat was bein' used, can't say dat I mind," Remy replied. "Don' be jealous chere, I like yo' bettah." 

"You know Remy, that was stupid even for a guy comment," Karen said. "Look, do whatever you like, but watch out for her dad, Officer Cardie, has a gun, a bad temper and works at the school. I'd feel weird if you ended up dead." 

"Merci chere," Remy said. "Yo' been a big help." 

****** ****** ****** 

Ororo played with the ends of Danny's hair, her body draped over the back of his chair as he worked on the computer. "Are you done yet," she whined. 

"Almost," Danny replied. "I just have to finish debugging..." 

"Couldn't you do that later?" Ororo interrupted. "I'm here now, wouldn't you rather play with me than that silly box?" 

" 'Ro I'm sorry but this is important. If I don't get this finished my advisor will skin me alive." 

Ororo shot a hate filled glare at her rival, then arranged her features in an appealing pout. "You're neglecting me," she claimed. 

"Just give me a few more minutes," Danny pled. 

"Alright," Ororo sighed dramatically moving to lean against the computer monitor as she superstitiously pointed a finger at the back of the computer. A small bolt of lightening leapt from her finger to slag the computer's delicate innards. 

Danny stared, horror-stricken as his computer sparked, fizzed and died. 

"Did something go wrong?" Ororo asked innocently. "Maybe it's a sign you should take a break." 

Using a pen, Danny managed to extract a warped disk from the computer's drive. He looked ready to cry at the sight of the mangled piece of plastic and metal. "I'll have to start all over," he moaned. 

"Come on Danny," Ororo said tugging playfully at his arm. "Let's go have some fun." 

Danny pulled away from her angrily. "Don't you understand? This is important! It'll take forever for me to recreate the program from scratch. I'm going to be stuck in a computer lab from now until kingdom come!" 

"Well fine!" Ororo snapped. "If you didn't want to spend time with me, all you had to do was say so! I guess that stupid box makes you happier than I do!" 

"Since when is doing home work a capital crime?" Danny exclaimed. "What are you on anyway? I mean we go out on a couple of dates and then you act like I'm cheating on you when I'm trying to get some work done." 

"I'm sorry," Ororo said, feeling ashamed and stupid. "I'll just get out of the way. I shouldn't have..." With a guilty sigh Ororo trailed off and turned to leave. 

****** ****** ****** 

Remy loitered outside his next class waiting for his self- appointed bodyguard to show up. 

"I really wish it were possible to embarrass you," Scott said. "Couldn't you have checked in with me before… well, um… Remy you can't have know her for more than a day, don't you think that was moving a little fast?" 

Remy shook his head. "Mon ami, most femmes I meet durin' m' shows. Got mebbe twenty minutes to convince de chere she want to know me bettah, plus keepin' de rest of de audience entertained an' anyt'ing else I be doing. Knowin' de femme for a whole day be unheard of." 

"Forget I ever asked," Scott replied. 

"By de way, I got a lead. Yo' might want to check out Dave Cardie, de homme be a cop so dat 'xsplains Jean's leads bein' screwed wid, neh?" 

"Okay, good job Remy," Scott said. "You should lay low while Storm and I check him out." 

"Non, I disappear mebbe he get suspicious. Probably won' do a t'ing while I be here an' I'll even let Stormy give me a ride to de Denaras'," Remy offered. "Jus' to make yo' feel bettah." 

"Alright, just..." 

"... Be careful," Remy finished mimicking Scott's tone. "I heard it before." 

"And if I actually thought you were listening I might quit saying it," Scott replied. 

"Doubt that, me," Remy replied. "See yo' after class." 

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	6. 5 of 8

**School and Home**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Part 5 

"I can't believe how stupid I was," Storm repeated to Remy as they drove toward the Denara's. "It's just that Hank is always on his computer. I can't even fight with him. He just stares at that thing like it's his whole world. It's like I'm not even there to him." 

"T'ought we be talkin' 'bout dis Danny guy," Remy commented wondering if he and Pete were the only sane X-men left. These days Scott and Logan couldn't stand to be in the same room, Hank never left his room, Ororo never shut-up about Hank and Jean was putting off some weird vibe the made his hair stand on end. Of course the Professor was still the Professor, but Remy felt about as comfortable in his presence as he did in the presences of a poisonous snake. 

Remy was almost glad he'd been forced away from the mansion, the rising tensions would have driven him to take his chances on the streets again months ago. Except even though Scott was a pain and Logan was away more often than not and Jean didn't like him and Pete always seemed to keep him at a distance and Ororo and Hank were both too wrapped up in their personal melt downs to think about anything else, they were still the first people he'd called friends or counted on in longer than he could remember and he didn't want to loose that. 

After what seemed like an eternity of listen to Ororo ramble about Hank and Hank disguised as Danny she stopped the car in front of the Denara's 

" 'Mind Scott that I could be helpin'," Remy said as he got out of the car and started for the house. 

Walking through Kevin's gardens Remy saw even more leaves drooping, curling and beginning to turn an unhealthy brown and he wondered how long it would take for them to die of grief. 

He noticed fresh turned earth and other evidence of Rachael's efforts to stave off the inevitable. A futile gesture in a war that was already lost. The gardens weren't natural. Thanks to Kevin's mutant abilities, they were alive and aware in a way that was just wrong for a plant. From mourning their master they would fade and wither despite Rachael's best efforts and it didn't matter anyway. No matter how long Rachael managed to keep the gardens alive, they would never welcome Kevin home. 

"It would have been easy to envy the other boy his loving family," Remy thought to himself. "If Kevin hadn't been dead that was." With things the way they were Remy just hoped Logan would pick him up before the body was found. He liked Rachael and Mark; he didn't want to be there to see their hopes crushed out. 

"Doin' what I can," Remy reminded himself firmly. "If dere was somet'ing more I could do, dat Scott would let me do, I..." 

Remy paused taking in the shear amount of labor Rachael was putting into the rapidly fading garden. "Mebbe it gives her some comfort, or at leas' a distraction. What she gonna do when it be gone?" 

Remy closed his eyes, taking slow deep breaths and carefully reached out with his abilities to try to change the emotions he sensed around him. "Je desolute, mais yo' can't cry no more," he murmured softly. "Know he's gone an' yo' hurtin', but dere be other people carin' 'bout yo'. Who will Rachael have to care for if yo' all up and die? Don' yo' love her too? Kevin loved her, can feel it me. He'd want yo' to take care of her. Yo'll love Rachael for me, for him, won' yo'?" 

After a few moments Remy shook his head in disbelief. "Talkin' to a bunch of plants, must be crazy neh?" He said to himself. "Mais, hope it worked." Then knocked on the door. 

"Remy," Rachael greeted him welcomingly. "You don't have to knock." 

"Mebbe I like bein' 'vited in chere," Remy replied trying to cover up the awkwardness he felt about them opening their home to him. 

"Afternoon Remy," Mark said, he didn't ask but Remy heard the question anyway. 

"Found a lead I t'ink," he said. "Cyke an' Stormy be lookin' into it." 

"Do you think?" Rachael began her eyes shining with hope. 

"We t'ink we know who be responsible," Remy replied avoiding the real question. "I be a little tired, yo' mind?" 

Having excused himself Remy retreated to his room. 

****** ****** ****** 

Cyclops glanced nervously over his shoulder. "Does it normally take this long?" he asked. 

"It wouldn't take as long if you'd hold the freaking light still," Storm snapped, not looking up from the lock she was trying to pick. "Gambit probably has much better nerves for this kind of thing. I should have taken him," she muttered. "What is it with you? Fighting super-villains, no problem, but a little B&E makes you a nervous wreck." 

"Remy's too young..." Cyclops started when Storm interrupted with a snort. "And we're breaking in to a cop's house. It's going to look really bad if we get caught without anything to back up our suspicions." 

"Then come on, the door's open," Storm said pocketing her lock picks and opening the kitchen door. 

"I'll check the basement," Cyclops said. 

"Too obvious," Storm disagreed. "Bedroom maybe?" 

"We're going to split up anyway," Cyclops replied with a shrug. 

****** ****** ****** 

"Remy, there's a police officer here to see you," Rachael called. 

"Merci," Remy said unsurprised to see Officer Cardie waiting at the door. Remy joined him on the front step. "Let's take dis away from de house. Dey nice, upstandin' people, no reason to upset dem," Remy suggested. 

"Look kid," Cardie said making an effort to tower over Remy. "I have no idea why the Denaras would want to have another freak around and by now I'm sure you've got a pretty good idea of what happened to Kevin. I looked you up, you could leave if you wanted to, it'd probably increase your life expectancy." 

Remy tried not to laugh at the man, he'd stood up to Sinister, his sparring partner and best friend was the world's top assassin, the idea of a middle-aged cop threatening him was a little ridiculous. Still he should at least act like he was taking the conversation seriously, getting a confession or some valuable information out of the man would help derail Scott's tirade about him having it in the first place. 

"And if you do decide to risk staying, keep the hell away from my daughter and any other normal girls and for god's sake stop painting a target on your back." 

"If I don'?" Remy asked letting his eyes glow a little. 

"If I see you with my daughter again I'll see if I can renew the NYPD's interested in you. I can understand them not putting much effort into nailing you for petty theft, but hell, they had you connected to a double homicide and several thousand dollars worth of missing diamonds. I'm sure they'd be eager to re-open the books on that one. As for the other stuff, just common sense kid, you do fit the profile for our local serial killer, you don't have to work at pissing that guy off." 

Remy watched with something approaching shock as the older man turned and started walking away. "Dat's it?" he demanded. 

Cardie paused. "Yeah, this was a warning; stay the hell away from my kid, you don't I'll find a way to keep you away from her. And if that isn't enough incentive to get out of town, I thought you should realize you're courting an ugly death living here. I don't need the paper work, so why don't you go back to where you came from." 

****** ****** ****** 

"Attic?" Cyclops asked. 

"Process of elimination say yes," Storm replied. "You know I've been thinking, Cardie's a cop, he'd know better than to keep incriminating stuff in his own house right?" 

"You couldn't have had this revelation an hour ago, say before we broke in?" Cyclops hissed. 

"Why didn't you?" Storm snapped back. 

"Okay we're here anyway, lets be thorough," Cyclops sighed. 

The attic was little more than a crawl space beneath the roof turned into a storage room. Several minutes after the two X-Men began poking through boxes the distinctive sound of a door slamming echoed through the house. 

Without a word, Cyclops scrambled back to the trap-door entrance, quietly lowering it back into place as Storm positioned herself beside an air-vent. 

After a few minutes they heard Cardie's voice raised in anger. "I don't give a damn, lock him in the basement handcuff him to his bed, just keep the junior psychopath under wraps for a few days. I'm dealing with the problem!" 

There was a break in the conversation. 

"Phone?" Cyclops mouthed to Storm who nodded in agreement. 

"It won't be for much longer," Cardie said a moment later. "This kid isn't like the others, he's got no real ties to this place. I can get rid of him, but I'm fucking tired of hiding bodies for you." 

Another pause. 

"Well you raised him. Just keep him under control, people are starting to wonder, he's going to get caught. Hell, I think the damn mutie-boy suspected *I* was the killer. We can't keep doing this," Cardie concluded slamming down the phone. 

Cyclops gestured to the window, "Let's get out of here," he whispered. Storm opened the small window then crawled out, her winds wafted her gently to the ground. Cyclops followed her. He paused sitting on the window ledge, looking at her questioningly. Storm grinned and waved him on. With that reassurance Cyclops jumped, he landed softly beside her. They walked into the shadows across the street. 

"I'll stake him out," Cyclops said. "You call Remy, let him know Cardie isn't the actual killer and Remy is definitely a target. Tell him to get somewhere safe; we don't need his help anymore. Oh yeah, find out if Remy's new girlfriend has any brothers, cousins or anything. Call Beast too, have him hack the phone company's records, I want to know who Cardie was talking to. If Beast doesn't think he can get the info by morning, have him put Marvel Girl on a plane here. Damn, I wish we had a second Blackbird." 

"Will do," Storm replied. 

"You can check around, see if you can find any relatives or friends of Cardie's with any sons in their teens or early twenties." Cyclops continued. "But make sure to get some sleep as well, you're relieving me tomorrow at 10:00, I'll call if anything happens before then." 

****** ****** ****** 

Storm found Remy pacing between her and Scott's hotel rooms. "Where de hell yo' been girl?" he demanded angrily. "Why yo' got your comm. off?" 

"Look out or you'll start sounding like Scott," Ororo said. 

"I had news an' yo' weren't 'vailable," Remy snapped. 

"We turned them off while we were taking a look at Cardie's house," Ororo explained. 

"It ain't him," Remy said. 

"Yeah, we know," Ororo replied. "He isn't doing the killing, but he's involved in the cover up. Scott wants you to hole up until Logan gets here. You did your part, now it's our turn." 

"I can still help," Remy protested. 

"Come on, Remy, you and Scott 'll just fight about it and it'll slow everything down," Ororo sighed. "Everyone knows Scott's being anal but now isn't the best time to fight about it." 

"Fine," Remy growled. "I jus' be back at de Denaras' watchin' m' toenails grow." With that the younger boy stalked down the hall and violently slapped the elevator button. 

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	7. 6 of 8

**School and Home**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Part 6 

Remy spent the whole walk back to the Denaras' muttering angrily to himself about rigid, overprotective sticks in the mud, but as his hand touched the garden gate he felt a chill run down his spine. Acting on instinct Remy threw himself to the side. A sharp line of fire creased his side, but Remy kept moving, rolling to his feet and sprinting for the relative safety of the neighboring house's sheltered entryway. 

Gambit automatically calculated the sniper's approximate position as he ran. Once he reached the doorway he paused to check his injury and was relieved to see it was little more than a long scratch. 

Carefully Remy scanned the streets. A car drove by and Remy shrunk back not allowing himself to be silhouetted by it's headlights. As he did so he spotted a glimmer of light on the roof of the house next door to him. 

"Reflectin' off glass or metal," Remy thought to himself. 

Keeping close to the wall Remy slipped around to the back of the house, then across the dividing strip of lawn and through the bushes. He scaled the brick wall of the neighboring house as easily as climbing a ladder and quietly pulled himself on to the roof. Remy moved across the slate like a ghost and moments later he was standing over his sniper, who was still intently scanning the street below for signs of Remy's presence. 

Remy telescoped out his bo-staff and moved forward, stepping on the sniper's rifle as he pressed the tip of the bo-staff against the back of the sniper's neck. 

Panicked the sniper released his gun and tried to roll away. Remy pinned him easily then planted his knee in the center of the sniper's chest and pressed the length of the bo against his throat until the fight went out of him. 

Remy stared down at the sniper, "Yo' Karen's friend Grady, aren't yo'. Why de hell are yo' tryin' to kill me?" he asked angrily. 

"Are you stupid as well as a freak?" Grady spat at him. "You're kind doesn't belong here." 

"Karen an' de rest of your friends don' act like dat be de case," Remy said. 

"They're naive," Grady said. "They think mutants are the same as people, they don't understand." 

"Guess it jus' m' luck dat de racist lunatic in de group also be de quiet one," Remy said to himself examining Grady's rifle and scope. "Where'd a kid like yo' get an 'xpensive t'ing like dis?" he asked, ignoring the fact that he was no older than Grady. 

The other boy glared silently at him, blue-gray eyes narrowed with hate. 

Remy sighed; he set the gun aside and drew a card. "Yo' don' like mutants, neh," he said as the card began to glow with his bio- kinetic energies. "Dis be 'cause yo' need dis fancy gun to blow m' brains out an' I jus' need a playin' cahd to do the same to yo'?" 

Remy pressed the glowing card to his captive's throat. "Where'd yo' get de gun?" he asked casually. 

"They're going to kill all of you freaks, make things safe for normal people again," Grady ground out. "You think you can just walk in and take over the planet, not without a fight!" 

Remy considered taking the boy back to Scott and Ororo then decided he was tired of being treated like a helpless child. "Dey gonna kill all of us mutants, neh?" he goaded, dark eyes burning. "How 'bout yo' take me to dem an' see what happens?" 

"I'm no traitor!" Grady exclaimed. 

Remy laughed. "Yo' whole group scared of one mutant an' me not even ole 'nough to fight, 'cordin' to Cyke anyways. Mebbe dey all hot air, why waste m' time wid dem. Dey probably trip over demselves an' BAM! off goes dose toys of yours, no more hate group neh?" 

"They'd kill you!" Grady yelled. 

"Let's give dem de chance," Remy replied. 

"You're on!" 

****** ****** ****** 

"Ororo, we've been trying to get a hold of you guys for hours," Jean said. "Remy's family called, they're coming to Westchester, to talk about whether or not they want him to stay at the school. Remy needs to get back here." 

"Remy has a family?" Ororo asked in disbelief. 

"Apparently, his mom Josette and her older brother, I think his name was Jean-Luc, are supposed to be coming," Jean replied. "The uncle's the one doing all the talking so far. The professor says he's hiding something, he couldn't figure out what over the phone." 

"Scott'll be happy," Ororo said. "Remy's already done what we needed him for here. We need you guys too..." 

****** ****** ****** 

Remy used his powers to dissolve the lock on the door to the rundown building he'd been led to. He'd left his guide behind about a block back, tied up and gagged, tucked behind a garbage dumpster. 

The building was a cross between a warehouse and an office building, deserted at the moment. The walls were plastered with anti-mutant propaganda and posters trying to recruit people for something called the Friends of Humanity. 

In one of the back rooms Remy found crates of guns and ammo. "Hardly safe storin' all dis here," Remy said to himself, grinning as he fingered a card. "One little spark an' den we havin' some fun." 

With that Remy dropped the card on top of a box of ammo and started running. Behind him a series of explosions sounded. 

From a safe distance Remy stopped to watch the fireworks. "Oh hell," he muttered to himself. "Probably shouldn't burn up all de evidence." 

With a sigh he started looking for a phone to call the fire department. 

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	8. 7 of 8

**School and Home**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Part 7 

"What do you mean, you can't find Remy!" Cyclops exclaimed. 

"He wasn't at the Denaras' when I called," Storm replied. "They didn't even know he'd been out earlier. I've flown back and forth between their place and the hotel. No sign of Remy, but I found a rifle on the roof of the Denaras' neighbors' along with a singed playing card." 

"I got the picture," Cyclops said grimly. "Get over to Cardie's as quickly as you can, we don't have time to play games anymore." 

With that Cyclops tapped off the comm. badge and started across the street. 

An optic blast shattered the door Storm had picked a few hours earlier giving Cyclops entrance to the house. 

Cardie stumbled out of his bedroom, half dressed and carrying a pistol. 

"Drop it," Cyclops ordered. "Or you end up like the door." 

Responding to the ice-cold tone, Cardie surrendered. "What do you want?" he asked with false bravado. 

"Who's killing them?" Cyclops demanded. 

"I don't know what you're talking about," Cardie replied. 

"The hell you don't," Cyclops said coldly. "You're covering for the killer, he's got Remy now." 

"I told you, I don't..." 

"If Remy gets hurt it's your fault!" Cyclops yelled. "You aren't listening! I KNOW! If not for you this guy would be caught and Remy wouldn't be in danger! Anything that happens to him happens to you! Understand?" 

"I don't..." 

Cyclops' optic blast smashed a hole I the wall beside Cardie's head. 

"Stop wasting time," Cyclops said. 

"I..." 

This time Cyclops blew a hole in the floor at his feet, forcing Cardie to jump back. 

"It's my nephew," Cardie said defeated. 

****** ****** ****** 

Remy moved through the crowd of on-lookers who'd come to gawk at the fire, years of practice made him invisible. 

The police were trying to push the crowds back in case the fire found any more ammo to blow up. The fire crews were hanging back, spraying down the neighboring buildings, trying to prevent the fire's spread, but less than willing to enter the Friend's warehouse. Everyone was talking and Remy was listening with all his strength. Listening to the words and the feelings swirling around him. 

There it was, a swirl of hate and fear and guilt. Remy approached the knot of men projecting the ugly emotions. 

"It was them," one man hissed. Remy stared at him, waiting for him to feel it. When the man met his eyes Remy paused for a beat then slid into the crowd working his way toward the dark shadows while the man roused his friends to give chase. 

A slow, subtle chase in the crowd, none of them willing to draw official attention. 

Remy waited at the edge of the crowd, making sure they spotted him, then he ran for the alleys. 

****** ****** ****** 

"Directions," Cyclops demanded shortly. He sat in the back of the car, one hand hovering over his visor's trigger the other clamped around Cardie's upper arm as Strom drove. 

Cyclops didn't have Wolverine's "You were dead the minute you looked me in the eye." presence but the fear and anger generated by the knowledge that Remy, who he thought of as a younger brother, was in danger created an edge of it's own and Cardie didn't doubt that Cyclops would make good his threat to kill him should they be too late to save Remy. 

"Cyke look!" Storm exclaimed stomping on the breaks and gesturing to the hellish glow lighting a corner of the city. "You don't think..." 

"That's where we'll find Remy, at the heart of the trouble," Cyclops finished. "Hit it!" 

"If you don't need me anymore," Cardie ventured. 

"Stay!" Cyclops barked. "After this is over you're taking us and your less corrupt colleges to where-ever you stashed Kevin Denara's body. He deserves a decent burial and to see his killer punished. All those kids deserve to be alive, but you can't give them that." 

A few blocks short of the fire Cyclops caught the sound of a secondary explosion off to his right. "Storm," he said. 

"I saw it," she replied wrenching the car into a hard turn. 

Cyclops shoved Cardie forward so he could handcuff the already bound man to the car door. "Stop the car, we don't want to barrel in blindly," he said. 

The two X-Men moved quickly toward the latest explosion and practically ran into Gambit. 

"Get de hell out of here!" Gambit hissed as he recognized them. "Yo' goin' to screw-up m' plan!" 

"What plan?" Cyclops asked, bodily dragging the younger mutant into the shelter of a recessed doorway. 

"Got dem mad, not t'inkin'," Gambit said in a rush. "Ain't showed dem 'nough powers to scare dem. Dey gonna chase me right back into de arms of de cops, who ain't happy 'bout dem stockin' guns an' such." 

Scott's face twisted with pained indecision. "Go," Cyclops said. "We've got your back." 

Gambit darted out of the darkened hall; a minor explosion brought the FOH running. 

As they passed the recessed doorway Cyclops whispered grimly to Storm, "If any of them draws a gun, drop them. If you even think that Remy's losing control of the situation or if I start shooting hit them as hard as you can." 

****** ****** ****** 

"What the?" One of the officers at the scene of the fire exclaimed upon finding Remy's long discarded guide. The officer loosened the boy's gag. 

For a few minutes the sniper swore and cursed almost inarticulately as other police officers, firemen and reporters gathered and he was untied. 

"Gonna kill that red-eyed freak, just like I killed all them other freaks," Grady snarled. "No. Gonna kill this one slow, make him beg for it." 

"Are you confessing to the mutant slayings?" one of the reporters yelled. 

An ugly, hate-filled smile on his face, Grady looked squarely at the reporter and said. "It isn't murder, they're not human." 

****** ****** ****** 

As Gambit neared the scene of the fire he slowed, his pursuers began gradually closing the gap between them. The card he'd used to draw their attention after Scott's interference was the second to last that he'd thrown. The last card hadn't even exploded; the charge had been so weak it had simply fizzled. 

Just a few feet more and they were close enough for him to feel the blood lust pouring off of them. Gambit put on a short burst of speed as he broke into the street were the chase had begun. 

"Keep yo' head down," he thought to himself as people turned toward the newest commotion. 

"Help me!" Gambit yelled, stumbling. 

****** ****** ****** 

Hearing Remy cry out, Scott felt his heart freeze, then a flash of memory showed him Remy kneeling in a pool of his power, hunted for months but still defiant, forcing the Marauders to back down. He saw Remy sparring with Logan, avoiding a strike with cat-like reflexes and an acrobat's style. 

Storm's eyes clouded over as she called on her powers. "Wait," Cyclops said. "He's playing them." 

Scott flinched as the fastest of the pursuers kicked the boy viciously in the side. Remy took the blow without resisting, keeping his gaze down, hiding his eyes Cyclops realized. 

Then the crowd and the police descended, roughly pulling the FOH members away from Remy. 

"Go get Cardie," Cyclops said. "Let's make our contribution to this little scene." 

"What are you going to be doing?" Strom asked. 

"Making sure things don't turn ugly when the crowd figures out why those guys were after Remy," Cyclops replied. 

****** ****** ****** 

"Mutie freak started the damn fire, burnt our place down," the nominal leader of the FOH men spat as he was handcuffed. 

"Yo' mean yo' de guy dat owned all dem weapons dat been blownin' up?" Remy asked innocently, then protested to the police. "I jus' lookin' to see what de do-see-do be 'bout, like everyone else. When I start for home dese creeps start chasin' me." 

"Why'd they target you?" one cop asked and Remy finally looked up, letting them notice his eyes. That answered all their questions. 

"Gala night huh," Remy heard one of the reporters whisper. "Fires, arms stockpiles, self-confessed serial killers, mutants, a would be lynch mob. I wonder what comes next; terrorists or an alien invasion?" 

"I think this gentleman has something to say," Cyclops said. Remy turned to see Strom and the X-Men's field leader escorting Officer Cardie into the hullabaloo. 

"I thought we told you X-Men to stay out of our investigation," the ranking officer, recognizing the uniformed teens. 

"We were helping Remy settle in his new foster home," Cyclops claimed. "Your officer brought us back into the case, he mentioned that Remy might be the killer's next target." 

"Why would you guys send the kid here since you knew about the killer?" a reporter yelled. 

"There aren't many families willing to take obviously mutant foster kids," Cyclops replied. "And the lawyers were forcing the timing. But that isn't what he needs to talk to you about." 

At a slight nudging from Storm, Cardie said. "I knew who the killer was, I hid the last body, screwed up some of the evidence." 

"Dave?" the ranking officer asked, stunned. Then he glanced toward the car where Grady had been confined and a light went on. "He's family, a nephew right?" 

Cardie nodded. "His parents said they had him under control." 

"Aw hell Dave," the other officer sighed. "You know better." 

"He covers up a murder and you feel sorry for him!" Storm exclaimed, outraged. 

"Storm!" Cyclops said, hushing her. "They know him, he's a co-worker, its only natural. It's not like it will stop them from carrying out their duties." 

Storm rolled her eyes and Cyclops quietly added, "At least not this time when the confession was made in front of representative from every major news agency in the area. So be gracious, we won." 

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	9. 8 of 8

**School and Home**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Part 8 

"We won huh?" Ororo said as they elevator took her, Scott and Remy up to their rooms. "We've got some freakin' psycho claiming killing mutants isn't murder because we're not human and he's got a support group. We've got four dead kids. And how long is it going to be before the police put all the stories together and charge Remy with arson?" 

"Like to have seen yo' handle t'ings bettah chere," Remy said irritably. 

"I wouldn't have burned a building down when we were trying to stay on the cops' good side," Ororo said. 

"I don' well wid de police," Remy said with a shrug. "Dey always end up wantin' to 'rrest me for somet'ing." 

"Big surprise!" 

"Leas' I don' get caught, dat be more dan yo' can say!" 

"Shut up! Both of you!" Scott shouted. "Ororo, no matter how we'd gotten proof on Cardie and his nephew the reaction would have been the same and frankly, I'm glad Remy destroyed the FOH's weapons, illegal methods or not. We'll deal with the arson issue if it come up, until then don't borrow trouble. Remy what exactly were you thinking, going after them without even bothering to ask for back-up?" 

"Like yo' would have offered it. Yo' would have jus' tried to send me to bed if I'd given yo' de option," Remy snorted. 

Scott winced. "All right, I admit defeat. You handled things pretty well out there." 

"Yo' could sound happier 'bout that," Remy replied. 

"I'm not happy about it," Scott said frankly. "I don't have any reason to keep you out of the X-Men now. But it doesn't matter how good you are Remy, someone out there is better, or they just get a lucky break. Then you're dead and chances are it'll be me who sent you into whatever killed you. Maybe it's selfish of me, but I liked the thought of having one friend who wasn't under my command." 

"Don' try no guilt trip on me," Remy said. "Besides yo' know none of us be dat easy to kill." 

"Don't be cocky, we've had two serious injuries in just over a year," Scott said as the elevator doors opened. 

Rachael was in the hall waiting looking worried. When she saw Remy she broke into a huge smile and pulled the startled boy into a hug. "I'm so glad you're all right," She exclaimed. "When Storm called and you'd disappeared..." 

Remy stiffened pulling away, "M' sorry Rachael," he said softly, not looking at her. 

For a moment she just stood there then in a dazed voice she asked. "Kevin?" 

"M' sorry," Remy repeated. 

"We'll drive you home," Scott offered as Rachael's eyes filled with tears. 

****** ****** ****** 

"He was dead for we evah got involved, dere wasn't rien we could of done to save him?" Remy asked unhappily as they left the Denaras' after giving Rachael a ride home and collecting Remy's stuff. 

"We couldn't have saved him," Scott confirmed grimly. "Come on, lets get back to the hotel, you ought to get a few hours of sleep before flying back to Westchester." 

"Hien?" Remy asked. "I thought it take a couple of days for de Professor could use dis brouhaha to convince dem I be more trouble den I worth." 

"They found your folks, well your mom and an uncle anyways." Ororo said. "They wanted to talk with you and the Professor before deciding anything..." 

"So you're going back post-haste. Ororo and I catch up in a few days, after we see how things settle out here," Scott said. 

"I hate Josette and I don' know no onlce," Remy protested. "Why dey get to have a say in m' life! I don' want dem! Dey nevah wanted me 'fore now!" 

"Maybe they had a change of heart," Scott said. "You should still talk to them. If they care explain the school's the best place for you. If they don't, well, like you said you don't want them anyways and they should still be willing to leave you with us." 

****** ****** ****** 

A quiet knocking drew Scott into the hall. 

Ororo stood there looking uncomfortable. "I shouldn't have gone off at Remy like that earlier," She said softly glancing toward the bathroom where she could hear the shower running. "I can't help but think maybe Hank was right. Maybe I only noticed how much of a scared, lonely kid Remy was because Xavier made me and now that I'm away from the Professor I'm reverting to type." 

"What's that supposed to mean?" Scott asked. 

"Maybe I really am nothing but a nasty, little witch," Ororo said. "Maybe all of the changes I was so proud of were just Xavier screwing with my head. I'm no hero Scott, I'm a car thief." 

"No, I can't buy that," Scott said. "We had a rotten night, that's all. You shouldn't have taken it out on Remy but it doesn't make you a bad person. I wanted to shake the little idiot till his teeth rattled for taking off on his own like that." 

"But you didn't," Ororo said. 

"Mostly because I figured that kind of thing would only make it certain that he'd keep doing things like that. Eventually he would have gotten in over his head," Scott said. "This way he'll be getting into trouble with us instead of on his own. The Professor must be delighted, I can't keep Remy off the team anymore." 

****** ****** ****** 

Remy found himself trapped in an endless maze made up of huge glass tubes, each one holding a person writing in agony; A small girl with bones protruding through her skin, a man with angel's wings, so many people. People he'd sent to Essex believing he was helping them only to learn, much too late, that he'd consigned them to hell. 

He turned a corner and found himself staring into strikingly vibrant green eyes set in a dead and rotting face. 

"Non! Yo' don' belong here," Remy protested. 

"You came to help and brought misery to my family," Kevin said accusingly. "You destroy hope, ruin lives..." 

****** ****** ****** 

"Remy wake up," Scott mumbled sleepily, shaking the younger boy awake. 

" 'M sorry. I tried," Remy cried as he woke. 

"Bad dream?" Scott asked sympathetically. "I'm not surprised after what we saw." 

"Don' want to talk 'bout it," Remy stated pulling his knees to his chest and staring miserably into the darkness. 

"Fine," Scott signed, having learned better than to push when Remy didn't want to share. "We might as well get up, no reason waiting till the last moment to take you to the airport." 

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	10. Epilogue

**School and Home**

Disclaimer: Characters and Premise are borrowed from the Marvel, I'm not making any money.

Epilogue 

Remy wandered into the mansion's kitchen, yawning and rubbing sleep out of his eyes. Moving on autopilot he lurched toward the coffee. 

"Nightmares still bothering you?" Jean asked, glancing up from the paper she was reading, looking disgustingly wide-awake. 

"None of your business spook," Remy snapped. 

"I didn't read your mind brat," Jean responded. "Scott was worried about you." 

"What's new?" Remy muttered. "Why ain't Logan here?" 

"He and Peter are still on their op with the police. We're expecting them back any day now," Jean answered. "You better hurry up and get dressed unless you want to go to the airport in your pj's." 

"Why am I going to de airport dis time?" Remy asked. 

****** ****** ****** 

Remy waited impatiently with Jean at the airport. "Why I have to come?" he complained for what Jean estimated was the hundredth time. 

"They're your family," Jean replied, feeling like a broken record. 

"Mais meeting' dem here, it's like saying' I want dem," Remy argued. "I don' care 'bout dem. I don' want dem in m' life. I want rien to do wid dem." 

"Yeah but you can recognize them and I'd feel stupid holding one of those silly cardboard signs," Jean replied. 

A tall man with long, reddish brown hair, pulled back into a ponytail and the face of a good-natured pirate emerged from the plane. He paused, quickly scanning the room then walked directly toward Jean and Remy. 

Remy noticed the man and started looking around for Josette, but the man appeared to be alone. 

The man stopped in front of Remy and stared at him intently. "So you be callin' yo'self Remy Lebeau now," he said and it wasn't a question. 

"Who de hell are yo'?" Remy demanded feeling like he was being judged. 

"Jean-Luc Lebeau." 

"I got a right to de name too," Remy said angrily. "Josette's man say she mus' of laid wid de devil to get a chile like me, and he don' have no family name s'far as I know, mais Josette can't say I ain't hers. No mattah how much she wants to." 

"I t'ink it suits yo' petite," Jean-Luc said mildly. 

Remy stood there, speechless, as his hostility toward the man faltered. 

"Where's Remy's mom?" Jean asked suspiciously. "I thought she was coming too." 

"So did I chere," Jean-Luc said with a sigh. "Mais we both be wrong, it jus' be me." 

Jean reached out to scan the man and was surprised to find his thoughts as untouchable as Remy's. 

****** ****** ****** 

Xavier waited for Jean-Luc to settle himself it one of the office's chairs then said. "Mr. Lebeau, I must be honest with you, I'm not comfortable simply turning Remy over to a long lost relative he doesn't even recognize. Also I am quite aware that you are a man with secrets." 

"Den we have something in common, neh?" Jean-Luc replied. "Did some checkin' into dis school's financers an' I didn' get too many answers, but dose dat I did get… I t'ink it best if we both jus' respect dat de other's secrets ain't gonna harm de chilen, d'accord?" 

"Why didn't Remy's mother come with you?" Xavier asked changing tactics. 

Jean-Luc's lips thinned. "Yo' should understand dat Josette be m' baby soeur an' I'll a'ways love her, but jus' now I ain't too proud of her," he said. 

"She refused to acknowledge a mutant child," Xavier extrapolated. 

"Yo' could say dat, but yo'd be ignoring de real problems," Jean-Luc said. "Truth is if Remy hadn' of been a mutant, t would have been somet'ing else. Josette was only 16; she married Armand on de sly when our pa'ent tol' her dey didn' want her seein' him no more. She kept it quiet till an annulment be out of de question, de family's traditional 'bout t'ings like dat, so dey let her try, even dought Armand be too ole' for her and jus' no damn good. Kept an eye on dat husband of hers as much as I could, but when Remy be four dey moved up to Baton Rouge." 

Xavier caught a few flashes from Jean-Luc's mind that told him that this was far from the whole story; something about hiding both the marriage and child from a benefactress, but Jean-Luc's shields, so like Remy's, prevented him from casual prying. 

"We lost touch, didn' know what be happenin' till dat connard beat Josette half to death. De police contacted de family. Remy be gone for more dan a year by de time we know anyt'ing 'bout it. I managed to trace him to N'Orleans, but dere he disappeared. After all dat Josette's still de same spoilt little girl. She blames Remy for her marriage goin' bad even dough her whole family try to tell her dat her husband be trouble." 

"I hardly think it will benefit Remy to force the boy back into that situation," Xavier said. 

"Josette be living wid me an' mon fils," Jean-Luc said. "An' Armand not be an issue any more. When Josette turn stubborn 'bout makin' dis trip I told her to either do her duty by her fils or to give responsibility for de boy to me. Yo' can see which she chose; I'm legally Remy's guardian an' I ain't totally opposed to him attendin' your school here, but de boy should know he's got a family to call his own, non?" 

"What are you getting at?" Xavier said. 

"Be takin' Remy home wid me. Want him to spend some time wid us. Give everyone de chance to get to know one another. Den, if I t'ink it be a good t'ing I send him back here, but dis be a school, not a replacement for a family." 

Jean-Luc was surprised to see Xavier bristle at his comment. "I don't believe Remy would be comfortable being drug off to live with a group of strangers, even if they are related to him," Xavier said. 

"I chose to meet Remy here 'stead of simply havin' him sent home for jus' dat reason," Jean-Luc replied. "Lets de boy meet me wid his friends 'round." 

"And if he isn't willing to leave with you?" Xavier challenged. 

"I nevah believe in borrowin' trouble," Jean-Luc said. "No reason to worry 'bout somet'ing dat probably won' happen, neh?" 

"If that's how you feel about it," Xavier said with a small, secretive smile. 

****** ****** ****** 

Jean-Luc and Remy wandered the mansion's grounds as they talked. 

"... I t'ought for sure we'd los' yo' when I found out 'bout yo' meetin' up wid Richard Lambert," Jean-Luc said. "De man t'ink he was some sort of modern day witch hunter, I didn' t'ink yo' had a chance 'gainst him." 

"Yo' really looked for me?" Remy asked wonderingly. 

"I nevah quit," Jean-Luc said quietly. "Los' hope, but I didn' give yo' up." 

"Why?" Remy asked. 

Jean-Luc smiled sadly. "Yo're m' family an' I know yo' don' 'member me, but I was more dan a bit fond of yo' when yo' were a little t'ing." 

"Den why yo' let Josette take me 'way from N'Orleans?" Remy asked. "Don' 'member much back den, but I a'ways knew I was happy 'fore we moved. Dat be why I headed back dere when I ran 'way." 

"I wish I'd known, but dere was a time when N'Orleans wasn' safe for yo' petite," Jean-Luc said. "Armand found a job he liked an' movin' jus' seemed like de smart t'ing to do. Jus' 'bout de same time yo' Grandpere was in an accident. I ended up takin' on a lot of new 'sponsibilities an' when Josette tell me everyt'ing be fine it didn' occur to me to doubt her." 

"Josette a'ways be sayin' dat," Remy said accusingly. " 'Everyt'ing be fine.' 'Oui, Remy broke his arm, but rien be wrong.' ' Oui, dat be a bruise, yo' all know how clumsy I be.' Everyt'ing a'ways fine, rien evah wrong. Leas' not in public, when we 'lone, everyt'ing be wrong an' it all be m' fault." 

"Je desole Remy," Jean-Luc sighed. "I know it ain't a good 'nough 'xscuse, but I didn' know what was happenin'. I would have done somet'ing much sooner if I had." 

"Mais, yo' didn't an' yo' can't change t'ings now," Remy said. 

****** ****** ****** 

Flames licked at the edges of Remy's dreams, something ancient and terrifying straining at it's bonds. Despondency pressed down on him, born of isolation and insecurity, it torn at the foundations of self-esteem and bred desperation. The external pressure set ghosts both old and new free to tear at his mind. 

Vines wrapped themselves around Remy's legs, binding him in place. "You let me die," Kevin accused. 

"Rien I could do. Scott said so," Remy protested. 

"You couldn't help me either," a tall dark haired girl said. "Of course I didn't need help near as badly before I met you." 

"Maren, je desole, 'm so sorry. If I'd known, I nevah would of sent yo' to him. I only wanted to help," Remy apologized. 

"You really aren't much good at helping," Mia said, scowling at him. "You promised to bring my mommy back, you lied." 

"Little One, I couldn', I jus' couldn'," Remy pled. "I did what I could." 

"And it's never enough," a tall blond man with broken wings dragging behind him said. "Too little, too late and all that's left is ashes." 

****** ****** ****** 

Restlessly Remy wandered the darkened mansion. Morning was hours away, but he didn't even want to look at his bed. 

He didn't know why his nightmares had chosen now to return with such a vengeance. Kevin's was hardly the first rotting corpse he'd seen. He felt awful for Rachael and Mark, that could explain maybe one night's guilty dreams, but rationally he knew that the boy's death was in no way his fault. His subconscious just didn't seem to care about what was rational. 

Remy noticed light seeping out from under the door to Hank's room. He was torn between wanting company to drive away the lingering shadows in his mind and having yet another person know that he was bothered by something as childish as bad dreams. 

"Henri got so many problems of his own, he won' have time to fuss 'bout yours," Remy decided, quietly opening the door and slipping in. 

Hank was so absorbed in his computer he didn't even notice that he had company. 

"Companionship widout any costs," Remy thought happily settling himself in. 

Fifteen minutes later Remy slipped back out again, a disgruntled frown on his face. "Sometimes being an empat' jus' sucked," he thought. 

Remy paused for a moment outside of Logan's empty room. If the older mutant had been home he probably would have been on one of his nightly prowls of the grounds. Remy suspected that the Canadian's mutation included a leaning toward being nocturnal, either that or his friend had an even harder time getting a solid night's sleep than he did. 

With a small sigh Remy moved on, leaving the empty room behind. Passing a window he caught a glimpse of a dark form moving through the shadows. "What de hell he be up to?" Remy said to himself, running silently downstairs. 

Even with his unnaturally keen night vision, it took Remy a few moments to pick-out Jean-Luc's form again, the older man had a knack for blending with the shadows. 

Without a second though Remy followed him. 

Scaling the outer wall Remy just caught a glimpse of Jean-Luc as he grabbed a ride on the back of a semi-truck. 

A few seconds later Remy was balancing precariously on the ledge of his own truck, hands scrabbling for purchase, cursing under his breath and wondering exactly what it was that his oncle did for a living. 

Jean-Luc ditched his ride once they reached town, where he had a dark, non-descript car waiting for him. 

Remy thanked his lucky stars that the car had been left in the parking lot outside a bar. It only took him a few seconds to hotwire a motorcycle and continue the chase. From Westchester into New York, they flew down the road. 

Jean-Luc left the car in a parking garage near an upper class section of the city. A few minutes later Remy swore as the older man looked directly at the shadow he was hiding in then grinned, inviting Remy to keep up, if he could. 

A mad scramble followed. Up a fire escape, across rooftops, through a skylight, through the elevator shaft, out an apartment balcony, across to the next building's fire escape and then Jean-Luc just disappeared. 

After fifteen frustrating minutes of backtracking and scouting around Remy gave up in disgust and headed back to the parking garage. 

Twenty minutes later Jean-Luc returned to find Remy leaning back against the hood of his car, arm crossed over his chest, scowling. "Yo' care to 'xplain t'night," he said. 

Jean-Luc tossed him a folded square of paper. Remy scanned the contents. "It be a lis' of names, so what?" 

"It be a lis' of likely backers for your Professor's school," Jean-Luc elaborated. "I did a little snoopin' back at de school, found a few of de puzzle pieces I be missin' lookin' from de outside. De picture dey form lead me here or rather to a trey posh nightclub several blocks from here. Dat be a lis' of de club's members. Havin' someone do de background check'll take sometime, but ain't yo' curious as to who wants to fund an elite, mutant vigilante group? 'Specially seein' as how yo're wid dat group?" 

"Oui," Remy said taking a second, more appreciative look at the list in his hand. 

"Yo' want to return your bike or ride wid me?" Jean-Luc asked. 

" 'M sure de police will 'ventually figure out where it belongs," Remy said opening the passenger door. "How yo' vanish like dat?" 

****** ****** ****** 

Jean peeked through the doors as she walked past the den for the third time since discovering Jean-Luc and Remy talking there. She frowned noticing that sometime in the past few days Remy had lost the determinedly sullen body language that had characterized the drive home from the airport and was now listening to Jean-Luc with open curiosity. 

"How's the family reunion going," Hank asked as she joined him in the kitchen. 

"I can't believe that Remy, of all people is falling for this guy's act!" Jean exclaimed. "The idiot's gonna get hurt again." 

"There is a certain moth to the fire attraction occurring," Hank said. "But I can see where Remy's coming from. To have you're family suddenly show us and say it's all a mistake, that they want you after all. I've got nearly five years on Remy and I'd be tempted to buy what Jean-Luc is selling." 

"That charm thing of Remy's probably runs in the family too, like the shields," Jean said. "I just don't trust the guy." 

"Jean, you don't even like Remy," Hank pointed out. 

"Yeah, but I'm not letting someone waltz in off the street and entice him into who knows what kind of trouble." 

****** ****** ****** 

A terrified wail broke the stillness of the night, bringing the mansion's inhabitants running. 

They found Remy, eyes wide and unfocused, striking out at phantom enemies, his room lit by the flickering glow of his powers. Hank noticed that instead of flowing over his entire body as they had during other times they'd seen Remy panicked the glow stuck to his hands, fading out about half way up his arms. 

"Remy wake-up!" Jean yelled both verbally and with her mind. Remy responded by throwing a charged pillow at her. Jean telekinetically contained the resultant explosion. 

Jean-Luc pushed past the others, speaking softly to Remy in a mis-mash of French, Creole and English. 

After a few minutes the glow of Remy's powers died and he threw himself into Jean-Luc's arms. "Oncle Luc," Remy cried in a voice that sounded much younger than the boy's sixteen years. 

Jean-Luc smoothed Remy's hair gently. "Shh, it's a'right now petite. I got yo', I got yo'." 

Gradually Remy returned to fully to the here and now. Blushing he pulled away from Jean-Luc. 

"You can't just keep ignoring those nightmare," Jean said gesturing to the remains of the pillow, once she was sure Remy was listening. "With you're powers this is dangerous. You should let the Professor help you." 

"Dat be your own fault, girl," Remy argued. "How many times I tell yo' to stay out of m' head?" 

Seeing Xavier arriving, Hank decided that the excitement was over and retreated back to his room. 

"Jean has a point," Xavier said. "It would be a simple thing for me to deal with." 

"Non!" Remy yelled sparks dancing around his fingers. 

"We will discuss this again in the morning, when you've calmed down," Xavier said frowning. 

Jean-Luc watched the other two leave then waited until Remy appeared somewhat collected. "Mebbe yo' 'member me a bit," he said. 

Remy's blush renewed itself as he thought back to his reaction to Jean-Luc's voice cutting through his nightmares. "I couldn't say J's," he said slowly. "Yo' told me jus' to call yo' Luc." 

Jean-Luc nodded grinning warmly. "Mattie used to watch yo' while Josette took her classes, yo' a'ways liked playin' in m' office best." 

"Yo' had green carpet," Remy said, his expression distant and thoughtful. "An' yo' kept lemon drops in de bottom draw of your desk." 

"Used to be licorice when Henri was younger," Jean-Luc said. "But yo' didn' like de licorice. Yo' nevah had much of a sweet-tooth, I had to do some lookin' to fin' somet'ing yo' t'ought was wort' de trouble of snatchin'." 

****** ****** ****** 

Xavier was surprised when Remy appeared in his office the next morning without prompting. "So you've decided to allow me to help with your nightmares?" he asked. 

"Non," Remy said. "Jus' t'ought yo' should know 'm gonna visit wid m' family for a few months. Jean-Luc got a call las' night an' we're leavin' dis afternoon." 

"What about Sinister?" Xavier asked. "You won't be protected." 

Remy shrugged, unconcerned. "Took him a'most two years to fin' me las' time. Probably would have been longer if I hadn' gotten in de fight wid Silvermane's people. I'll be dere an' back 'fore Essex knows what be up." 

"I can't approve of this," Xavier said. "You will be placing everyone near you in danger." 

"An' I wasn' when I stayed wid de Denaras?" Remy asked sarcastically. " 'Sides, I didn' ask your permission, jus' told yo' what 'm doin'. Told Jean-Luc 'bout Essex, he t'ink I be worth de risk an' mebbe he more capable of dealin' wid t'ings like dat den yo' givin' him credit for." 

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